John Amos Comenius, analogy, epistemology, metaphysics, syncritical method, microcosm, macrocosm, dignity of man

The study aims to analyze the importance of analogy in the writings of the Czech theologian, philosopher and educational reformer John Amos Comenius. Analogy is clearly invaluable for Comenius as it plays a key role in the introduction of a third, particularly reliable method ? syncrisis that allows us to see an image of something invisible (uncreated) on visible (created) things. For Comenius, this method became an integral supplement to analysis and synthesis, with all three forming the basis of all his studies. Syncrisis is principally applied to theological matters, for instance to the study of man, the living image of God that reflects the creator. The analogy of the micro- and macrocosm that Comenius uses is integral to both his epistemology and metaphysics. If a man (the microcosm) attains self-knowledge, he is able to know other humans, the entire material world (the macrocosm), and also his very archetype ? God. For Comenius though, man is not only a microcosm but also a little God (mikrotheos), a faithful imprint of God's perfection. Man, created as the culmination of the material world, becomes God's partner in maintaining and completing the entire universe. Human creativity, analogous to God's creative power, plays a decisive role in the creation of other worlds ? the World of Human Artifice, the Moral World and the Spiritual World. Ultimately, the collaboration of man and God is an inherent prerequisite to the culmination of creation ? the last world, the Eternal World.